Since Sepp Blatter resigned, a situation has been created where the United States-dictated Anglo-American/UEFA alliance will attempt to gain control of FIFA; although that alliance will face strong opposition from pro-Blatter national associations. (Europeans controlled FIFA from its founding, in 1904 to 1974). If the West does gain control, the vote on Russia hosting the World Cup will be re-opened, obviously pressed by constant anti-Russian/Putin propaganda derived from on-going United States and Swiss investigations and indictments. If a pro-West dominated FIFA is unable to strip the World Cup from Russia, there will be a vigorous effort by United States and British politicians for a boycott. What is certain is that the United States will do whatever it has to prevent the World Cup being held in Russia.

Furthermore, getting rid of Blatter will not end corruption in FIFA. And if the Anglo-American/UEFA alliance gains control of FIFA, it would control the distribution of revenues, particularly to national associations that do not follow the United States’ policy dictates, and, the selection of the host nation's for future World Cups. In fact, if this occurred the Global South and Russian football associations might break from FIFA and establish a parallel football federation. Regardless, whatever purging and re-organization of FIFA occurs, FIFA can not be restructured into a transparent-corruption free body as long as it operates in the United States-dominated neoliberal world-capitalist political economy.

The corruption that is also rank in the NCAA, in the IOC, etc. is impossible to get rid of and will worsen under US dictat.

Germany and Argentina are No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, in the latest FIFA world men’s soccer rankings. Now imagine if FIFA rigged the World Cup draw so that those two soccer titans met not in the semifinals or final, but prematurely in the quarterfinals.

They’d never be that dumb, right? But FIFA sure has no problem doing it in the Women’s World Cup, where making sure the stadiums are filled takes precedence over ensuring any sort of compelling competition.

Canada’s national women’s team was to play the United States there in the Olympic semi-final that evening.

It was a big game, but there was no good reason for it to feel charged. The Canadians had not beaten their greatest rivals in 11 years of competition. They had looked intermittently overmatched at London 2012, but had been fortunate in their draw. At least, to that point.

Nonetheless, the lead-up to that contest felt special. Everyone who was there – including me – remembers it that way. You just knew. Those are the words the Canadian players use to describe it. This is the story of that game, seen through their eyes.

It would not be a great victory. In the end, it was something more complicated and lasting. It was to be perhaps the most mythic, vexing and binding sporting loss in our country’s history.

They dug up a new species of dinosaur on a beach in South Wales last week. Then, when the women’s World Cup kicked off in Canada, they unearthed a few hundred thousand more.

The misogynists and the fools came crashing through England’s hedgerows like a herd of T-rex that hadn’t been fed for a while. Some of the reaction to the start of a football tournament eagerly awaited by so many was sad, ignorant, arrogant and really rather stupid.

Fox's coverage of yesterday's 5-2 United States win over Japan in the women's World Cup final was the most-watched single-network soccer broadcast ever in the United States, Fox said Monday, with 25.4 million viewers estimated to have seen the game on the channel. The soccer match that previously held the record for highest total viewership in the United States was the 2014 men's World Cup final between Germany and Argentina, whose estimated audience including both ABC and Univision broadcasts was 26.5 million. The Spanish-language broadcast of USA-Japan was on Telemundo—which announced this afternoon that an estimated 1.3 million people watched its coverage of the final, putting the estimated audience for the match at a total of 26.7 million. Thus it was, by a bald eagle's nose, the most-watched soccer competition ever broadcast in the United States, an event whose numbers are in the neighborhood of the largest-ever audiences for NBA and collegebasketball games.

The [current - ikosmos] Ukranian government has chosen to betray and to trash some of the noblest aspects of Ukraine’s history: the symbol of Ukraine’s past and currently betrayed heroism is in the famous World War II “Match of Death.” On August 9, 1942, Ukraine’s world-famous soccer team was held prisoner by the Nazis. They were promised that if they defeated the Nazi team in a soccer match, they would be given their freedom. The Ukrainian team, the “FC Start” local soccer team then played in a contest with the Nazi team, “FLAKELF” the Nazi air defense artillery team. The Ukranian soccer team won the match, defeating the Nazis 5 to 3. The Germans then hanged every member of the victorious Ukranian soccer team, as punishment for humiliating Germany in so great a defeat. Those Ukranian soccer players were not naïve. They knew that their Nazi opponents would not honor the promise to spare their lives. They fought to victory to prove that the Nazis were not invincible, even in soccer, the most popular sport in Europe. The Nazi humiliation was a symbol of the ultimate Nazi defeat by the Soviet army.

North American, Native American tribes and the game of Footy origin and who first played the beautiful game of footy.

1600 In Alaska and Canada the native Eskimos played a game called aqsaqtuk on ice, using balls stuffed with grass, caribou hair, and moss. One legend tells of two villages playing against each other with goals 10 miles apart.

1620 In North America, native American Indians Native American tribes, primarily the Algonkin and Powhatan tribes playing a variation of the sport known as pasuckuakohowog. Pasuckuakohowog, literally meaning "kicking ball sport" was reported to be played on fields a half mile in diameter and as long as nearly a mile.Teams would have nearly 100 people,Pasuckuakohowog which literally translates to "they gather to play ball with the foot.

1885 The USA and Canada, played in Newark and ended with Canada winning 1-0.

In 1957, Canada entered qualifying for the FIFA World Cup for the first time and met the United States and Mexico in qualifying for the finals in Sweden in 1958. Canada won its first World Cup qualifying game 5-1 against the U.S. in Toronto, but played Mexico twice in Mexico City and lost 2-0 and 3-0. In the final group game, Canada beat the U.S. 3-2 in St. Louis, but group winners Mexico advanced to the Finals.

Some more Footy,Soccer Timeline

5000-300 B.C. There is evidence in China that military forces around 2nd and 3rd century BC (Han Dynasty) played a game, originally named "Tsu Chu", that involved kicking a leather ball stuffed with fur into a small hole. Like Soccer, no hands were permitted during the play of the game.

2500 B.C There was possibly a version of a type of ball game played by young women in Egypt during the age of Baqet III, as images of this sport were depicted on his tomb, though there is not much known of this sport except that it was played with a ball.

1000 B.C. The Japanese version of 'soccer' was called Kemari, a game much like modern hackysacks, played with two to twelve players, and played a larger ball stuffed with sawdust. There was also a field designated by four trees (cherry, maple, pine and willow).

B.C. In ancient Greece, they played a game called Episkyros, in which two equal numbered teams would try to throw the ball over the heads of the other team. There was a white line between the teams and another white line behind each team. Teams would change the ball often until one of the team was forced behind the line at their end.

50 B.C. China's Tsu Chu players and Japan's Kemari players were the first to have an "International" game of their versions of soccer, believed to have occurred roughly 50 B.C.. There is a definite date of such a game occurring in 611 A.D.

600 - 1600 A.D. In Mexico & Central America the rubber ball was created, and used in a game on a recessed court 40-50 feet long shaped like a capital "I". In the middle of each wall, was a mounted stone or wooden ring and the object was to project the hard rubber ball through the ring.

700s The first Football games played in Britain was between the locals of east of England, starting after a 'legendary' game that involved kicking around the severed head of a Danish prince that they had defeated in a war. These games were violent, where injury and death were not uncommon

1331 Despite the violence of these celebratory games, they were still popular. This led King Edward III of England to pass laws in 1331 to stop the game

1424 King James I of Scotland also passed a law banning the game

1500 In Italy they played a game called "calcio" with teams of 27+ people. The game involved kicking, carrying or passing a ball across a goal line. In 1580, Giovanni Bardi published a set of rules of the game of calcio.

Soccer and Politicians:
Jack Kemp who in the 1970s an American Republican politician like Donald Trump, who at the time over 1970-1980 and many years afterwards, put to the pulic his mockery of soccer and NASL as a brand imported from third world or European socialism stating that it was a way to influence the American youth into the communist way, at the time 1970-1980 the NASL soccer was attracting a large number of audiences and selling more tickets to their matches than the New York NFL Giants and MLB Yankee combined, NASL and soccer was flourishing in the US and with the great players of the world Pele,Franz Beckenbauer leading the way, then Jack Kemp and his gang of hostile media reporters Jim Rome and Frank Deford noticed how soccer was starting to flourish, they soon began a propaganda campaign to discriminate against the NASL soccer in order to convince American fans and the youth that soccer was all about communist idealism. Jack Kemp and his hostile media reporters were worried about soccers growth popularity and he then began to claim that this posed a direct threat to American culture and tradition, many in the US took his comments to heart and seriously believed his comments,Corporation,then hostile medias soon stop the sponsorships,funds for the game of soccer,Kemps propaganda had made it`s mark,however the most loyal fans of soccer, NASL players felt betrayed, Kemps propaganda began it`s long lasting negative effect on soccer in the United States North America, this discrimination against soccer fans is still around today.Over-expansion had also been a factor in the league's death. Once the league began to grow, new franchises were awarded quickly, and its size doubled in a few years, peaking at 24 teams. among other problems, many of these new owners were not "soccer people," and once the perceived popularity began to decline, they came out as fast as they entered.North American Soccer League (1968-1984) Decline and collapse of the NASL .The largest club in the league and spokesperson of the organization was the New York Cosmos, which attracted more than 40,000 fans per game while superstars Pelé (Brazil) and Franz Beckenbauer (Germany) played for them. previously been the best attacking (offensive) (Pele) and defensive (Beckenbauer) players in the world. The Giants Stadium was packed or sold (73,000+) full house in 1978.
Before entering politics, Jack Kemp was a professional quarterback for 13 years. He played briefly in the National Football League (NFL) and the Canadian Football League (CFL), but he became a star of the American Football League (AFL). He captained the San Diego Chargers and Buffalo Bills and earned the AFL's MVP title in 1965 after leading the Bills to a second consecutive championship. He served nine terms in the United States House of Representatives from 1971 to 1989. He was the Republican Party nominee for the position of 1996 Vice-President of Elections, where he was the companion of presidential candidate Bob Dole. Kemp had already supported the 1988 Republican primary presidential nomination. He played in the AFL for the 10 years of his existence, Jack Kemp had a saying or proverb "the goal of the NFL is to throw bombs and score"